Overcoming the Storms of Life

By Thomas Denegre 8/21/2019

Are you ready to overcome the storms of life so you can continue to stand and prosper? 

In today’s readings of Mathew 7:21-28, Jesus explains he is our rock foundation in the storms of our lives and like the greatest sports teams and armies in the world, the right preparation, attitude, and belief will make you withstand the onslaught and prosper.

Jesus instructions are based on the counter intuitive. You must die to live. The first will be last and last will be first.  Jesus states, it’s not enough to have intellectual knowledge of whom he is, otherwise he will spit you out.  Second, tribulations and storms are guaranteed to come into your life, so Jesus, like any other loving parent, wants to give you a rock-solid foundation to survive and flourish.

Let me tell you about two brothers named Mark and Bennie who are close in age. As teenagers they were two peas in a pod being mischievous, aggressive, funny, smart, and troublesome.  The father loved both his sons and tried to steer them away from harm.  Mark went into the army and learned to channel his energy constructively while Bennie got into sales, drugs, and fast living. 

As time progressed Mark became a believer in Jesus Christ.  He opened his heart to the Lord and became teachable to His ways.  Mark got married, had several children, and became a newspaper journalist. Life was not always easy for Mark as the internet crushed his career forcing him into unemployment five years out of ten. But, by being dependent on the Lord he always had money, good health, and a devoted family.  Knowing and behaving as a son of God, great favor was blessed upon him.

Meanwhile, Bennie was less fortunate. Being opinionated, stubborn, and rebellious, Bennie refused to be taught the character virtues for a successful life. When the storms of life came upon Bennie it crushed him.  He went into bankruptcy twice while his health deteriorated to the point of death.  Sadly, he had no family to console nor nurse him.  The outcome of his choices led him to disaster.

Jesus once said, “The thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy, but I have come to bring life, and bring it abundantly.” John 10:10

I learned a lot from Mark.  He told me the greatest thing he ever did was open his heart to Jesus, so he could be loved.  By knowing how much God loved him, Mark lived in life union with Jesus.  He made sure the word of God was always in his mind and in his heart.  God’s Word breathe life into him, and he found himself naturally doing the things God wanted him to do.  Mark explained it was not an overnight transformation, but a gradual change over many years. His favorite verse was, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” John 15:7 

Mark explained that being dependent on Jesus allowed him to live out his God given virtues.

Mark pointed out the difference between living a life union with Jesus versus an intellectual knowledge of Jesus.  A life union with Jesus developed tremendous virtues and character traits within him, while the intellectual Christian rationalized his decisions by claiming his conscious overruled God’s Word.  Hence, the reason Christian intellectuals support abortion and sexual immorality, thereby unconsciously becoming the rebels against God; which is the reason Jesus did not know them and spitted them out.

Jesus is naturally the rock foundation for Christians to stand their life on.  The Apostle Paul wrote in Colossians Chapter 3, the framework to develop and apply our holy character.  By memorizing the verses, Mark said that every day some event would occur, and a verse came to mind for him to use.  By having God’s Word living powerfully within his mind and heart Mark developed the virtues of Obedience, Love, Mercy, Understanding, Compassion, Kindness, Patience, Forgiveness, and Repentance. 

Mark’s most used verse was, “Tolerate the weaknesses of those in the family of faith, forgiving one another in the same way you have been graciously forgiven by Jesus Christ.” Col. 3:13 (TPT)

It turned out fellow Christians could be the most difficult people to deal with.  Most Christians were on a path from pride to humility, from self-centeredness to selflessness, from self-hatred to self-acceptance, from holding grudges to forgiveness.  Beneath the façade of many Christians was a lot of toxicity that God was slowly healing out, but in the meantime had to be confronted.  Mark admitted he was a difficult and sometimes toxic Christian too.  But God gave him the grace to see people like the father of the prodigal son, whereby the person was far more important than the behaviors they exhibit.  Jesus was able to teach and encourage Mark to apply the virtues as a healing tool for himself and for others.

Mark learned people didn’t care what you know, they wanted to know you care. By living with Jesus, compassion and service to others will help heal the wounds that the storms of life inflicted.

We know the storms of life will always rise again in our lives.  I too learned that a life union with Jesus while having his Words alive in my heart provides the best rock foundation to survive and prosper through storms.  Below are Mark’s favorite scripture verses, or holy virtues, on building a rock solid foundation in your life.

You are always and dearly loved by God!

So, robe yourself with virtues of God, since you have been divinely chosen to be holy.

Be merciful as you endeavor to understand others, and be compassionate, showing kindness toward all.

Be gentle and humble, unoffendable in your patience with others.

Tolerate the weaknesses of those in the family of faith, forgiving one another in the same way you have been graciously forgiven by Jesus Christ.

If you find fault with someone, release this same gift of forgiveness to them.

For love is supreme and must flow through each of these virtues.

Love becomes the mark of true maturity.

Let your heart be always guided by the peace of the Anointed One, who called you to peace as part of his one body.

And always be thankful.

Colossians 3:12-15 (TPT)

Making Prayer Powerful and Effective in Your Life

By Thomas Denegre

Do you want your prayer life to be powerful and effective? Don’t you want your prayers to be so simple like Jesus’, that with one-word God will answer it? Here’s how to stand tall like an oak tree with the power of Holy Spirit flowing through you.

Today’s reading comes from Mathew 7:8-11 where Jesus states;

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! Mathew 7: 8-11

Jesus is instructing us how to use expectant prayer in our lives.  Much like a dance it requires both
partners to work together in harmony for top performance. Having been a leader in the Kairos Prison Ministry for two decades and serving on prayer and healing teams, here are a few insights on effective prayer.

It first starts with the right belief foundation or framework.  Jesus calls us to live in life union with him and to have his words live powerfully within us to obtain our desires (John 15:7), and “to seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33). Jesus and his words must live top in our mind, so it comes first in our lives.  It is critical that you first identify yourself as a son of God, so all thoughts are centered on Him.  You should consider yourself first a disciple of Christ who happens to be perform an occupation, versus working in an occupation who happens to think of God occasionally. 

By having our heart joined in love with Jesus, we can trust his word and promises to always be true and effective.  We are called to have 100% faith in his word which requires us to taste and eat his words. For it is written,

·         “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words shall not pass away.” Matthew 24:35

·         “The word of the Lord abides forever.” 1 Peter 1:25

·         “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.” Isaiah 40:8

As children of God we will receive the full faith, love, trust, and security when we open our hearts to receive his love. Humility is the open pathway of channeling God through us and onto others.  Pride, self-centeredness, intellectualism, and solipsism (the view that the self is all that can be known to exist.) is our enemy.  Our downfall comes when we depend on our performance and bank account, versus the power of God. Therefore, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Ps. 111:10); "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge" (Prov. 1:7). Wisdom and knowledge, not intellectualism, allows you to be open, teachable, and productive to the Lord.

Feelings are another dangerous roadblock to effective prayer. Jesus stated we are to believe and have faith in God; not emotions.  A famous story tells of the Roman centurion who went to Jesus to heal his servant whom was in a distant place.  The Centurion knew, and not felt, that based on Jesus’s authority and power alone, Jesus could command the servant to be healed.  “When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.” Mathew 8:5 

Just as a policeman knows, and not feels, he has authority to perform his work, we too, must know and act in the same way.  As a son of God, we have received the full blessings and authority (Ephesians 1:3) to act on the behalf of God.  For example, in Mark Chapter 11, a corrupted fig tree fooled Jesus, so Jesus cursed it and killed it. A day later the disciples saw the tree was dead.  Jesus responded by stating;

“Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. Therefore, I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” Mark 11:22-26

Jesus calls us to have faith in God to fulfill our prayer.  It’s important for us to know the five blockers of our faith.  If you pressed your fist into your other hand, you’ll have resistance.  On the resisting hand are the five fingers of resistance called fear, unbelief, doubt, unforgiveness, and unrepentance.  The other hand represents your faith.  If you remove the five fingers of resistance, then you’ll remove all resistance to your faith allowing pure faith to pass through uninterrupted. Hence the reason Jesus stated; “…Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Mathew 17:20

It is pure faith that allows the Holy Spirit to channel his power unhindered, that can move the mountains of bad thoughts, mental strongholds, diseases, illnesses, injuries, and demonic influence in people’s lives.  Pure faith consists of a humble heart living in life union with Jesus who is teachable to the Lord; has full confidence and trust in the Lord and His word; is filled with courage and wisdom, and is dependent on the Holy Spirit to flow through him and onto others.   Pure faith ensures the heart is not poisoned with unforgiveness nor loaded down with unrepentant sins.   Lastly, we will always trust God to deliver what is needed and not necessarily what is wanted. By his word, power, and grace, we know our generous Father seeks to give us the best so we may enjoy an abundant life in His Kingdom. (John 10:10)